The Water is Alive
by ReaperofDarkness
Summary: "The water is alive. I can hear the voices of it, calling to me. Calling me back to the kingdom." Haru wasn't normal, that much they knew. Of course, they didn't think him abnormalities would include talking to water, having fish scales, a mermaid tail, or the fact that he's a prince of the sea...Makoto's just glad they're graduating. Mer!Haru, slightly AU. FLUFF GALORE
1. Prologue

**Reaper: **Hi there Free!dom. This is my first Free! fanfic and it's based on the whole Haru-Merman/Mer-person thing with the second ending (which is so fucking amazing AM I RIGHT?!) Anyways~ This is just a idea I got and I don't really plan for a lot of people to like it (since it is a shitty story and I am a shitty writer jfc) but I hope you like it. This is gonna have all the water-homos in it, and all the gay you could ask for. Want a pairing in this story? Bros, just ask. Imma add every single fucking pairing you guys want, even if it is just a fluffy huggle scene or some smooooooches. Yuh. I don't do that hardcore frick-frack stuff (so sorry I've been on tumblr so much jfc look at me rambling) but uh, yeah, I can give you mega loads of fluff?

So sorry.

ANYWAYS~

**DISCLAIMER: **I do not own Free! If I did, I wouldn't be making fanfiction (or maybe I would. IDK maybe KyoAni makes fanfictions of their shit i dunno) but yeah. I don't own, sadly. Though I would be terrified if I did. So much pressure and people wanting to steal the rights from you, yuh.

Enjoy?

* * *

_**16 years ago…**_

The elderly lady hobbled along the sand, a basket hooked on her forearm as she took in the sun rising along the ocean's horizon. Gray hair tucked into a tight bun and a shawl covering her small frame, the elderly woman continued to watch the sun. Her blue eyes skimmed the ocean, watching how the water's surface danced with the light and colors of the sun's wakening.

The sounds of something moving on the sand drew her attention to a few feet in front of her, where a small figure laid. The elderly woman gasped, her eyes widening as she saw the tiny form of a toddler sit up. The toddler shook, hugging themselves as loud gasps escaped their throat. The woman rushed over, all but ripping her shawl off her shoulders as she saw the child was stark naked, his pale skin glistening with water and – the woman stopped, taking in the blue, shimmering fish scales that patched on his shoulders and arms and legs, his torso and belly-button framed with small clusters of the blue scales and glitter-like specs of sand that seemed to blanket his skin.

The boy, hearing the old woman coming, flinched and looked up at her. The woman's breath caught in her throat. The boy's eyes were a deep color of blue, reminding the woman of the dark depths of the ocean and his pupils were slanted like a cat's, ready to attack if threatened. The scales danced across his cheeks and forehead, looking like face paint smearing off as the scales began to sink into his skin. The boy's black hair was long, spilling down his back in uneven cuts of locks, slinging over his shoulder and dancing around his thighs. His frame was thin, skinny and small, his ribs showing through his flesh. His fingernails were blue, though the color was receding to a more fleshly color, like normal nails. The woman gently knelt down next to the boy, ignoring the way he tried and failed to scoot away from him, and wrapped the shawl around his torso, covering him up.

The elderly lady took off her sweat-jacket, shuddering as the morning air shook her aged frame, and draped it around the boy's shoulders. The boy watched her silently, his eyes calming down as he realized she wouldn't, or couldn't rather, hurt him.

"What's your name, child?" The woman asked, sitting back as the boy huddled into the over-sized jacket. The boy flinched and shook his head. He pointed to the ocean, his hand shaking, and the woman watched with baited breath as the water churned and danced up into a mini-wave, as if warning him to keep silent.

"You can't talk? Or not allowed to?" The woman asked, keeping an eye on the water, which seemed to draw back slightly at her narrowing gaze. The boy looked down, nodding his head.

"Can you write?" The woman asked and the boy stilled before shaking his head. The woman watched how he sluggishly moved his legs, as if trying to get a feel for them. The woman bit back a sigh. Of course she'd be the one who'd have to deal with the unnatural.

"Well, since you seemed to be from far away," the woman cast another glance to the water, "how about I name you Haruka." The boy looked up at her with wide eyes, his mouth opening slightly before his eyes went back to their distant, blank stare. The woman stored that into the back of her mind, silently observing how his scales were gone, making him look like a normal boy.

"My name is Chizuru. Chizuru Nanase. You'll be Haruka. Haruka Nanase," Chizuru spoke and stood up slowly, grunting as her back gave a sharp stab of pain. The boy just stared at her.

"My son and his wife can't have children, you see," Chizuru gave a sad smile, "so this will be a blessing for everyone. Come now, Haruka, let's go." Chizuru held her hand out, waiting for the boy to grab it. Haruka looked back to the ocean one more time before reaching out. It was a struggle, really, to get the boy up. It wasn't that he was heavy, quite the contrary, more like he didn't know how to walk on his legs. He fell flat on his face as Chizuru fell on her butt, both of them stilling. Haruka shot up, looking determined as he slowly stood, shaking slightly. Chizuru sighed and turned around, inviting the boy onto her back. Haruka wobbled over, hugging her around the neck as she stood up, supporting the tiny child.

"Let's head home Haruka," Chizuru spoke and began walking. Haruka burrowed into her neck, his eyes staring out into the ocean as they walked away.

_Tank wu, Chizuru-human, _a soft voice spoke into Chizuru's mind. The elderly woman nearly dropped the toddler she was carrying as she jumped, startled. She turned her head, seeing Haruka staring up at her with big eyes. His eyes seemed to dance, looking like they were vibrating in their sockets as he gave a nod.

"You can talk with your mind," she bluntly stated, biting the inside of her cheek as Haruka nodded again.

_We dun have spow-can words, _Haruka spoke in such a way that only a child could, still learning to pronounce correctly. Chizuru nodded.

"I'll have to teach you then," she decided and continued on her way. "How'd you get…here?"

_Curse, _Haruka said simply and nodded to the ocean as they moved up the stairs to the concrete side-walks and streets. _King…curse me…banishment…._ Haruka trailed off as his eyes slipped closed. He fell back onto Chizuru's back, slipping into sleep. The elderly lady gave a sigh, shaking her head lightly.

"I'm too old for this," she grumbled and continued on her way. Hopefully her son and his wife were awake.

_**16 years later… PRESENT TIME. **_

"Haru? Come on! We're going to be late for school!" Makoto called, standing a little ways down the stairs leading to Haru's house. Haru tilted his head to the side slightly, nodding silently to himself.

"I'm coming," Haru called out softly and stepped down the stairs, meeting up with his taller friend. Makoto gave a smile and turned, ready to head off to school.

Haru looked out towards the ocean, his eyes shining as the morning sun greeted them. Makoto followed his eyes and gave a small, almost sad smile.

"Come on," Makoto spoke softly as he grasped Haru's wrist gently, "let's go." Haru nodded and followed after his best friend, Makoto still holding his wrist.

In the ocean, the water churned and twisted.


	2. First Wave

**Reaper: **Thank you everyone who reviewed, Favorited, and are following this story! Thank you so much! : D I am glad you all like this story so far. I hope you continue to like it. lol

I am a huge fan of MakoHaru. This story will have a lot of them. Don't worry, all the other pairings will come, but it will mostly focus on MakoHaru because, let's face it, it is almost canon. lol.

Enjoy?

* * *

_**16 years ago…**_

"Haru-chan," Chizuru's daughter-in-law, Midori, cooed and crouched down to Haru, who was tugging on his long hair.

"Mi-Midu-ree," Haru tried to pronounce, his face scrunching up as he tried to force the words from his throat. Midori squealed and hugged the boy to her chest, squeezing him tightly.

"So close, so close Haru-chan!" Midori giggled. Chizuru and her son, Aoba, watched silently. When Aoba and Midori had found out they could not conceive children, Midori had fallen into depression and, fearing for her health and life, Aoba had asked to move in with Chizuru to help his wife. Now, though, Midori seemed to be back to her old self thanks to Haruka, who had been unofficially adopted into the Nanase household.

"Mi-chan," Aoba chided, getting up and going to the mother and child, "you'll choke him." Midori gasped, letting go of the boy. Haru looked up with his blank stare, his eyes glistening slightly.

"Aw, I'm sorry Haru-chan, I didn't mean to hug you so hard," Midori spoke and patted his head. Haru shook his head, grasping her hand with his two tiny ones.

"Y-you're…f-fine…" Haru spoke, his face scrunching up once more. Chizuru shook her head, her eyes trailing to the boy's long hair.

"Haruka," Chizuru called and the boy's attention was automatically on her. "We should cut your hair. We don't want people mistaking you for a girl, now do we?" Chizuru stood up, going to search for her scissors. Midori pouted, commenting on how Haru's long hair was adorable for a boy his age.

"Mi-chan," Aoba chided, "no boy would want their hair that long!" Chizuru came back, scissors in hand. Haru eyed the metal object, his eyes turning guarded as she approached. He shot up, stumbling backwards from her while shaking his head. Midori and Aoba reached out for him, Midori wanting to comfort him while Aoba wanted to hold him still.

"N-no!" Haru spoke, a bead of sweat building. His scales shimmered into view, his pupils slanting and his teeth sharpening. Chizuru froze as Haru backed up, hissing deep in his throat while his facial features turned more animalistic, reminding the three adults of a shark ready to attack its prey. Chizuru glared down at the boy, whose frame trembled.

"P-pwease," he stammered out, the color of his eyes darkening as the air in the room started to smell like salt water.

"You can't go around with such long hair," Chizuru spoke and Haru looked down at his hair before looking back up again. Slowly his face smoothed out and the salt water smell disappeared. He slumped his shoulders and trudged over to Chizuru, who had him sit down in front of her.

SNIP SNIP

Locks of black hair fell to the ground, shimmering like glitter for a moment before dulling. Midori, Aoba, and Chizuru stared at the hair for a moment before turning to Haru.

"Mermaids are so weird," Midori commented and the other two adults couldn't help but agree.

_**16 YEARS LATER….PRESENT.**_

"Ah! Haru-chan! Mako-chan!" Nagisa hollered, waving energetically to his two older friends. Beside him, Rei sighed and pushed his glasses up further.

"Good morning," Makoto greeted, raising a hand up as Haru and him drew closer.

"Drop the 'chan'," Haru greeted and yawned.

"Ah, Haru-chan's yawning! Did someone not get enough sleep?" Nagisa asked, leaning a shoulder against Haru's. Haru gave a soft grunt and shook his head.

"I went to bed early," the black haired boy explained, "it's the weather. Rainy days make me tired." Nagisa and Rei looked up, blinking at the clear blue sky.

"Rain?" Both underclassmen asked and Haru nodded. Makoto laughed, walking closely beside the shorter boy as he walked towards his class.

"Oi! Guys!" Gou rushed up, smiling to the four boys.

"Good morning Gou-chan!" Nagisa greeted. Gou's smile twitched and she pouted. "It's Kou! K-O-U!" Gou snapped, hands falling to her hips. Nagisa and her started bickering, Rei backing the female up whenever he saw fit. Makoto chuckled, trying to cover his mouth with his hand as Haru watched them with a very small smile playing on his lips.

The warning bell tolled and the group parted ways, Makoto bumping shoulders with Haru every few steps as they made their way to their classroom. Nagisa, Rei, and Gou left for their classrooms, Nagisa taken to slinging an arm around Rei's shoulders while Gou continued to bicker with the blond.

It was another school day.

* * *

"It's raining," Rei stated, Nagisa leaning against his shoulder as they watched out of the window of their classroom. Lunch had come around and brought rain with it. The two second-years stared at the gray clouds, the water droplets hitting against the glass.

"There you two are! Amakata-sensei was looking for you two!" A random student called, drawing the two boys attention to the student.

"Nee, Rei-chan," Nagisa spoke as the boys walked down the hall to the faculty room, "how did Haru-chan know it was going to rain? There wasn't anything in the news about rain." Rei tilted his head back, his fingers holding up his chin as he hummed aloud.

"No idea, Nagisa-kun," Rei spoke and stopped short. "That is weird, huh?" Nagisa nodded, holding his arms behind his back.

"Haru-chan just knows, I guess," Nagisa spoke and the two continued on their way.

* * *

"Haru," Makoto spoke as he stopped eating his lunch, "you were right again." Haru blinked before he turned to the rain.

"Ah," Haru spoke and turned back to Makoto, "I guess." Makoto gave a snort and went back to eating.

"Did you turn in your graduation questionnaire?" Makoto asked. Haru paused from eating, staring off into space for a second, before he nodded. "Did you?" Haru asked, meeting Makoto's stare. Makoto gave a small smile and rubbed the back of his head.

"Yeah," Makoto spoke, "I did." The image of Haru staring off into space the day they filled out the paper flashed through Makoto's head and his smile faltered. Haru, noticing, merely reached out, patting Makoto's shoulder.

"It'll be okay," Haru spoke, "whatever you pick to do is the right thing. You wanted to be a fireman, right?" Haru spoke. Makoto's smile grew back.

"Aren't you talkative today," Makoto teased and then nodded. "Haha, yeah. Remember the essays we had to do in elementary? How Rin wanted to be a police man?" Makoto asked. Haru perked up at the mention of their red headed friend and nodded.

"What did Nagisa want to be again?" Makoto trailed off in thought.

"An astronaut," Haru answered and Makoto smiled. "Oh yeah! You wanted to be…a cook, right?" Makoto spoke and Haru's head bobbed.

"Midori and Chizuru taught me a lot of cooking," Haru explained, "so I wanted to be able to cook for them when I got older." Haru and Makoto trailed off, Haru looking to his desk.

"Now though…" Haru sighed softly, "they're out of the country." Makoto rested his chin in his open palm, smiling.

"You can cook for them when they get back," Makoto suggested.

"If I'm here when they come back," Haru whispered softly to himself and Makoto's breath caught in his throat, his eyes –

"_Can't you hear them?" The young boy screamed, eyes unfocused and his skin even more pale than usual as blue scales and glitter shimmered along his flesh, "can't you hear them calling out? Why can't they just stop!" The boy crouched down, covering his ears with his hands as he squeezed his eyes shut. A younger Makoto, looking to be four or five, stood there, his own body shaking._

_Little Makoto crouched down, encasing the boy's own hands in his own as he moved closer to the boy. The shorter boy's eyes shot open and he looked up to Makoto, who gave a comforting smile. _

"_It's okay," Makoto whispered as the boy's eyes slowly started to calm, "I'll help you not listen to them." _

- widening as he let his hand fall from his face.

"Makoto?" Haru asked, watching how his friend's face had changed. Makoto blinked back into focus, giving a sheepish laugh.

"Sorry, sorry, I just realized I forgot to do the next class homework," Makoto spoke. Haru pulled out the mentioned homework and handed it over to Makoto, who thanked him.

Haru turned his attention to out the window, his mind drifting off into space.

_We'll be graduating soon, _Haru spoke and his hand, lying on his desk, tightened into a fist, _and then…then…._

Haru came out of his muse as the teacher walked in, signaling the beginning of the next class.

* * *

"Wait Haru!" Makoto called as his friend flew into the pool, diving down under the clear liquid. Nagisa, having just come back from changing, laughed and jumped into the pool, Rei hanging by the side of the pool as if deciding if he should go in or not. Gou was over with Amakata, who was intimidating Sasabe, who had unwittingly made a comment about Amakata wearing a swim-suit.

"Oi! Don't get to comfortable! I had you come over here to help with the finishing touches of this place! Work first, play after!" Sasabe called out. Haru, floating on his back, merely tilted backwards and went under the water. Sasabe's eyebrow twitched while Makoto merely laughed, rushing over to see what the man needed help with.

"You guys don't appreciate the importance of the Iwatobi SC Returns club! You think I built it just for you guys to swim during the cooler seasons!" Sasabe whined, Nagisa hopping out of the water to come help. Haru continued to float, his eyes closed as he let the water curl around him.

_**14 years ago…**_

"Mommy, why does Haru-chan hear voices?" Little Makoto, who had just recently met and befriended Haru who lived up the street, asked his mother with wide eyes. Tachibana-san, cutting up vegetables for lunch, froze and turned her head to look down at Makoto.

"Well…" Tachibana-san, who had talked daily with Midori Nanase and knew only that Haruka suffered from 'attacks', rubbed her hands on her apron and knelt down in front of Makoto, "sometimes some people are just…like that. Things happen in life and they hear voices from those things or they're born like they are. But that doesn't mean Haru-chan isn't any different from you." Tachibana-san smiled sweetly to her little boy, who in turn frowned at her words.

"Mommy, I know that!" The four-year old pouted. "Haru-chan is Haru-chan. I was just cur-curious." Makoto huffed uncharacteristically, as if insulted that the woman would think he'd think any differently of his newest (and fast-becoming-closest) friend.

"Can we go see Haru-chan? He said his dad and granny weren't home today!" Makoto instantly brightened up, peering up at his mother with pleading eyes. Tachibana-san gave a laugh and stood up, smoothing out her apron.

"Let's call Midori-san and see if she'll mind if we drop by for lunch. Go get dressed, though," Tachibana-san spoke and Makoto waddled off, humming happily to himself. Tachibana-san turned to the wall closest to her, where a phone was set up.

Dialing a number and had memorized to heart, she waited as it rung.

"Moshi moshi, Nanase residence," Haruka's empty voice sounded. Tachibana-san's smile faltered slightly and she bit back the need to sigh. Haruka, when she had met him, was such an odd child. She had, at first, thought he was just shy. But, after time, she began to notice how closed off he was. He didn't show any emotions or rarely changed his tone from the monotone sounding one he spoke with always. She had rudely brought the subject up to Midori who, after faltering for a few moments, had explained they had adopted Haruka and that the events of being an orphan was traumatizing.

"Hi there Haru-chan!" Tachibana-san chirped, "Mako-chan and I were wondering if your mother would mind if we popped in for lunch? It's just me and Makoto today and he said it was the same with you and your mother so..?" Tachibana-san blinked as she heard the distant sound of tiny footsteps running away from the phone. A few beats of silence went by before the sound of rustling entered the woman's ear.

"Hello? Tachibana-san?" Midori's voice sounded and Tachibana held back a giggle. Of course, the moment Haruka had heard Makoto wanted to come, he'd run for his mom.

"Hi there Midori-san! Makoto and I were wondering if you'd like to have lunch together. Makoto wanted to play with Haru-chan and I was just about to finish making lunch if you wanted to come by?" Tachibana-san asked, twirling the cord around her finger as Makoto re-entered the kitchen.

"Oh, sure," Midori spoke and whispered for Haru to go get changed, "we'll be by in a few minutes." Midori and Tachibana-san exchanged a few more words before the two mothers hung up. Makoto smiled happily to his mother, who mirrored his smile.

"I have a feeling you and Haru-chan are going to be attached at the hip," Tachibana-san spoke to Makoto, who merely tilted his head, smiling while the words flew over his head.


	3. Second Wave

**Reaper: **Thank you everyone who reviewed/are following/favorited this story. Thank you so much. OKay, so, **SPOILERS FOR THE THIRD EPISODE THAT CAME OUT - ** DID ANYONE ELSE JUST GET UP AND WALK AWAY IN SECOND-HAND EMBARRASSMENT FOR HARU? Because the moment I saw him begin his 'the water is alive' monologue while RUNNING, I just got up and screamed 'nope nope nope' and refused to watch the rest of the episode for, like, five minutes while I just suffered the embarrassment for Haru.

Also, Makoto with his serious eyes when they confronted Rei - yummy. LOL. Overall the episode made me laugh and blush and scream, so it was a good day. LOL

* * *

_**14 years ago….**_

Little Makoto clung to Haruka's hand, trying to hold his tears in. His little body shook with the force of having to bite his sobs back and Haru, standing next to him silently, merely looked straight ahead as the funeral service passed by them.

"Makoto," Haru spoke. Makoto jumped and turned tearful eyes to his best friend. Haru turned and stared directly at Makoto, his eyes sparkling a light blue.

"That grandpa, he died in the ocean, right?" Haru asked and Makoto sniffled and nodded, tightening his hold in Haru's hand. Haru nodded to himself and tugged Makoto to follow him, moving away from the line of men and going off towards the sand. Stopping right before the water, Haru pointed out into the body of water while Makoto fearfully stayed behind, his eyes training on where Haru was pointing.

"You can talk to the grandpa," Haru spoke and took a step into the water. Makoto blinked, wondering if his eyes were playing tricks on him as blue scales seemed to shimmer and disappear on Haru's arms and face. "You can say goodbye to him."

Makoto took a step backwards, shaking his head slowly side to side. "What-what do you mean?" Makoto asked. Haru turned and faced Makoto, the setting sun's light casting a blanket of shadows around Haru and allowing his glowing eyes to be more prominent against his face.

"The water is alive," Haru explained and the scales shimmered into sight again, "and I can talk to it. If you let me, you can talk to it too. To say goodbye to the grandpa who died here." Tears trickled down Makoto's cheeks and the boy finally broke down into sobs, collapsing onto his knees as his tiny fists went to shield his face from view. Haru watched on, his eyebrows pinching upwards in confusion.

"I can't!" Makoto wailed out, "I can't!"

* * *

_**14 years later….PRESENT TIME.**_

"Ah! RinRin!" Nagisa called, finally back in the pool after they had helped Sasabe finish whatever it was he needed done. Haru opened his eyes, looking to the side to see Rin, Ai, and Sousuke walk into the pool area, Rin giving a annoyed stare at Nagisa, who waved to them. Sousuke looked at all of them, glaring momentarily to Haruka, who looked away.

"Hi Ai-chan!" Nagisa called, Rei swimming over to the side to greet them. Makoto sat at the edge of the pool, his legs floating with the water as he smiled to the three new faces. Gou moved over to give Sousuke and Rin hugs while Amakata and Sasabe were off somewhere.

"Yo, Haru, Makoto, Nagisa, Rei," Rin greeted back coolly, dropping his bag over near the wall as Ai whined for Nagisa to stop calling him 'Ai-chan'. Rei settled next to Nagisa, their arms brushing as he, Nagisa, and Ai began to talk. Rin and Sousuke joined Makoto and Haru drifted over to float in front of them.

Rin frowned, watching Haru.

"You okay?" Rin asked, kicking at the water and splashing Haru. Haru glanced at Sousuke, who was again glaring at Haru (not that anyone noticed) and then up at the ceiling again.

"Yes," Haru mumbled and dove under the water, his eyes slipping half-closed as he touched the bottom of the pool. Haru closed his eyes and held his breath, stilling.

_Ha-ru. __Ha-ru. Haru. Haru. Haru. __Haru. HARU. HARU. HARUHARUHARUHARUHARU ! _Thousands of squeaky, echoing voices chanted Haru's name, swarming and curling around him like a protective wrapping. Haru let his breath out, air bubbles escaping like streams of water that chased to the surface. His eyes open and he stared at the shifting, swaying water around him.

_I hear you, _Haru thought and felt the water rapidly sway faster around them. Haru pushed off the bottom of the pool, kicking to the surface. Haru broke the surface, flipping his hair out of his face as he gave a soft gasp of air. He blinked, suddenly seeing a large hand in his face. Makoto met his mildly startled gaze and smiled at him. Haru reached out to grab the hand, only to suddenly be dunked into the water by Nagisa.

"Ah! Haruka-senpai!" Rei called, paddling over to help Haruka. Makoto rubbed his head, laughing as Nagisa started to splash Rei, who failed in helping Haruka. Haruka popped back up, glaring at Nagisa, who in turn grabbed Rin and used him as a shield.

Soon, Ai, Sousuke, and Makoto were the only ones not swimming and splashing around, instead watching the group of boys mess around in the water.

"He's so carefree, isn't he?" Sousuke asked, watching how Haru drifted out of Rin's reach. Makoto looked over at Sousuke for a moment before turning back to watch his friends.

"Yeah, he is," Makoto spoke and looked at the rippling chlorine water, "it really helped Rin." Sousuke looked over at Makoto questioningly, Ai politely getting up to get a drink.

"Rin had some emotional troubles last year and Haru-chan (with the help of Rei) really helped him get through it," Makoto spoke. "It was really surprising that he's even friends with us again, after all that happened last year." Sousuke frowned, turning back to watch Rin laugh at Rei, who was trying to perform some sort of 'beautiful tribute to the water' or something.

"Rin doesn't have the time to be horsing around," Sousuke spoke with a frown. "Not with the time limit we have. Nanase-san may not want to compete professionally in swimming, but for Rin and me…it's actually pretty frustrating, so see someone with so much potential just…waste it."

Makoto opened his mouth –

"_Until the banishment is lifted," Haru spoke as he stared at the sky, his hand clasp in Makoto's, "I am bound here."_

-before closing it again. He gave a sad smile to the water and, as if sensing the smile, brushed up against his legs.

"I guess," Makoto spoke lightly, "but that's Haru-chan for you. Haru-chan is Haru-chan." Sousuke snorted and stood up, excusing himself to use the restroom. Makoto gave a sigh and stretched his arms, his back muscles tightening at the movement. He paused, however, when he noticed Haru watching him. Haru turned away and splashed Rin right in the face with water.

* * *

"That was fun!" Nagisa called out to the sky, the group of boys walking home. Rin, Ai, and Sousuke had left to avoid punishment for breaking curfew and the Iwatobi group were left to clean up the wet mess they had created with their splashing fight. The sun was setting now, casting long shadows along the houses and sidewalk as the boys walked.

"Bye bye guys!" Nagisa called, waving as he tugged on Rei's arm towards the direction of the train station. "Ne, ne, Rei-chan, let's have a sleep over!" Nagisa begged as they walked away. Makoto turned to Haru, who was walking away of him with his hands stuffed in his pockets.

"Haru-chan," Makoto called as he strode to catch up with the black haired boy.

"Drop the 'chan'," Haru responded as he slowed down to Makoto's pace. Makoto smiled and the two walked on in silence.

* * *

"Mou, Rei-chan, why can't you sleep over?" Nagisa whined as he hung himself on Rei's shoulders. Rei barely contained his sigh of frustration and pushed his glasses up as the boys rode by themselves on the empty train car.

"Because one, it's a school night and two, because I don't have anything to change into," Rei spoke. Nagisa gave him a weird look before pouting.

"Not like you haven't worn my clothing before anyways," Nagisa grumbled and Rei blushed, his ears and neck reddening. Rei pushed his glasses up again, looking away from the pouting blonde.

"It-it's not such a easy thing to fit into your clothing," Rei stammered out and Nagisa titled his head to the side, pouting his cheeks.

"How mean~!" Nagisa whined and draped himself across Rei. Rei blushed harder and gently shoved the shorter boy off him.

"Anyways, Nagisa-kun, tomorrow is the Sports relay," Rei reminded and Nagisa froze, his cheeks tightening at the corners.

"Oh yeah," he muttered and looked off to the side, "it is." He brightened up and slapped Rei across the back, startling the blue haired boy.

"Mako-chan, Rei-chan, and I will win it for sure!" Nagisa called, ignoring Rei's mutter of 'What about Haruka-senpai?'


End file.
